Waikato NZ — and the Waikato Regional Council needs to do better in terms of tourism.
Waikato is often touted as a region known for it’s scenic beauty, bicycle trails, adrenaline packed activities, local farmers market and more. But, in many places in the region, there are problems — from lack of vibrancy, to substandard hospitality, to very few hospitality places, and to other issues such as criminal behavior and riots, like that seen in the Coromandel in the New Year of this year.
Otorohanga, New Zealand. It’s the town that tourists stay in when they come up to explore the Waitomo Caves — as well as for tourists to explore the Kiwiana Capital and visit a bird park. It is an intriguing town. But, like many other places in the Waikato, it comes with a problem — a major lack of hospitality businesses. This also runs true for Miranda, Kaiaua and Waharau* — all of which is also in the Waikato region, lay along the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH), which is a gorgeous drive starting from Whitford and Clevedon, South Auckland, and all of which have some sort of activities, including bird watching etc. — which all of them also have either a single digit number of hospitality businesses, or, in the case of Waharau, none at all.
How do people who go tramping in Waharau or stargaze look for nearby places for food and/or drinks? And since the park is managed by Auckland Council (Confusing, I know), how are people expected to consume alcohol in the area without a beach bar or a cocktail bar? In an ideal setting, people would consume drinks such as margaritas on the beach, or in this case, the coast.
This is the problem with the Waikato, especially that Covid-19 has reduced tourism down dramatically. And yet there seems to be little effort into putting money into improving tourism in the region, including updating the site to cover all the districts and adding more hospitality, tourism and retail precincts (as well as facilities). Without more hospitality businesses and other facilities in the region, many towns would be one without vibrancy, and some people may choose to skip that destination altogether. And tourism operators in that area could suffer as a result.
Let’s take a look at some towns, cities and their problems. Hamilton, the most populated area in the region, while a very beautiful city, but has a lack of vibrancy, and the food and drinks isn’t the best in terms of hospitality nationwide, which is not a good look for the city. Cambridge, touted as a shopping destination, doesn’t even match that of Auckland, in which which we have designer outlets and boutiques such as Gucci, Prada, Mulberry etc. (Auckland also has an annual fashion week). Auckland also has more than just fashion in terms of shopping, also and has more choices for both local and international goods. Waitomo is best known for their caves, but very little hospitality businesses, and many of these are closed. Miranda, known for shorebird watching, their geothermal hot pools and being on the Pacific Coast Highway and also being part of the Hauraki Rail Trail, has very little in the way of hospitality again, and also could do with some adventure activities, given the large land area. Also, their hot pools are temporarily closed at the moment, and there is little in the way of updates.
Also, Waikato NZ doesn’t cover three districts of the region — the Coromandel Peninsula (Thames-Coromandel district), the Hauraki district and the Taupo district. Which means that these areas have slightly less coverage in the media in terms of Waikato tourism than the districts covered by Hamilton Waikato. Also, while the Coromandel peninsula has its own site (which is good), it should be included in the Hamilton Waikato site as the site should cover the whole region rather than select areas.
There are SOME areas that have done well, such as parts of the Coromandel Peninsula, and also Taupo. In Taupo, there is not only adrenaline fueled activities such as parasailing and the AJ Hackett bungy site, but there are lots of hospitality businesses and high class hotels and/or lodges to stay in, and so, there is vibrancy in the township. However, these are not covered by Hamilton Waikato tourism, and as a result, are overlooked. Coromandel Peninsula, which has its own site (The Coromandel), has a fairly decent amount of restaurants, bars (including beach bars), taverns and tourist activities, including snorkeling and kayaking. But this applies to some areas, such as Whitianga, Whangamata, Coromandel Town and Hahei/Hot Water Beach.
Crime rates, riots and criminal behavior and viral videos hasn’t helped, either. On New Years Eve of December 2020, there was an uprising in Waikeria. In that same space, rioting also broke out on the east side of the Waikato — the Corommandel Peninsula. On April this year, some youths were involved in a brawl in Hamilton. Also, in the Coromandel Peninsula, a boat rage incident in Tairua involved a convicted murderer on his dinghy and a school principal on a boat.
Waikato should be known for more than a Waikato Draught Beer, or Lemon & Paeroa, in terms of the beverage industry. Waikato should be known for more than having the longest river and the largest lake. Waikato should also be known for more than agriculture. It is a very large region, being the largest region in the North Island, and the 4th largest in New Zealand, with the other top three being South Island regions. Waikato is also very diverse in it’s environment — from beaches and sand dunes in the north to ski fields and volcanic craters in the south, and from the shorebird coast in the east to caves in the west. Both the council and the tourism sites for the Hauraki, Coromandel and Taupo areas and the Greater Waikato region should invest in more tourist activities and facilities for the region, that is appropriate to the environment. Also, no one would go to the Waikato to drink Waikato Draught — in terms of alcohol, people want high quality craft beer, good wines, spirits and cocktails. Distilleries, breweries and vineyards should be promoted too. However, there is not a single search result for distilled spirits, including vodka and whiskey on the Waikato NZ website, which indicates that the region may have very little in the way of locally distilled spirits. This is bad news for young adults (who tend to favor premixes, cocktails, shots and spirits rather than wine), and cocktail enthusiasts alike.
Waikato could also take examples from other regions in New Zealand in terms of tourism. Areas like Queenstown, Arrowtown, Wanaka and Cromwell, in Otago, and other places like the Auckland region, Rotorua, the Mackenzie District in Canterbury and Milford Sound in the far south, are examples of tourism done right. Proper advertising, lots of hospitality, tourism and retail precincts as well as an abundance of facilities is also what is needed for the Waikato. Also, a hard and tough approach to crime, riots and gang violence also helps make Waikato a safer place and therefore makes brings more domestic and international tourists (when the borders reopen) as tourists feel more safe in the area or region. And transparency is key when it comes to managing these businesses — people need to know, for one example, if a business is shut for renovation and need to be updated along the way. Waikato NZ and the Waikato Regional Council seriously needs to start thinking about tourism especially now and before the borders re-open.
*Please note that although the Waharau Regional Park is managed by Auckland council, all the Auckland managed park lands along the East coast road, including Waharau Park — and the Waharau area is in the Waikato region, under the Hauraki district.
